An Orchestra Carol
by JessieBell10000
Summary: Mr. B, a tired music teacher, is visited by five ghosts, all in the skins of his violin students. Ghosts, books to order friends from, and broken strings inside! R&R! -


An Orchestra Carol  
  
I. Introduction  
  
Mr. B picked up a squeaky violin and started to tune it. The sixth grader looked at him in awe as he turned the pegs and tried to fix it. But, snap! The string broke and hit Mr. B right in the face. "Darn!" Mr. B said as he rubbed his face. He then went into the cabinet for another string. Reading the date on the little packet he put it back in the shelf.  
  
The sixth grader looked at her violin and a frown appeared on her face. Mr. B looking away went to another filing cabinet and pulled out a string that was under 50 years old. It was almost two o'clock and this broken string was taking up the whole orchestra, and ever since Wendy, Deana, Joyce, Jill, Cynthia, and Jess had left there was no more fun left in teaching orchestra. He now had to pick mediocre music and he couldn't even get that to sound good. He had used "Fiddles out West," three years in a row because of the level of hard work.  
  
As the clock struck 2:15 he finally started to work with the group. Then, one of the girls raised her hand and said, "Mr. B, I have to go to art."  
  
"Go," Mr. B sighed. There were only eight people left and it was only one day before the concert. Some of the people didn't even bother to show up. In his head Mr. B thought, If only Wendy, Deana, Joyce, Jess, Jill, and Cynthia were here. Then he raised his baton and started to count off. When the first note was played he cringed. The very high-pitched D on the A string hurt his ears and made his ears ring. For another 10 minutes they worked on tuning the note and by the time they actually got it right it was 2:30. He sighed and let the remaining group leave. As he slowly trudged to his office he remembered what it was like when the other kids were there.  
  
Now, he had "torture" written on every page in his little lesson book. When he sat down at his desk he saw a music book, it was called "I will be your friend." It brought back the memory of the last concert he ever had with Wendy, Deana, Joyce, Jess, Jill, and Cynthia. They had been searching his desk and they found the book.  
  
"Who gave you this Mr. B?" Jessica asked.  
  
"You'll never guess," he said.  
  
"Who? Who?" They all asked in unison.  
  
"Miss Bontatibus," he answered. The group of girls broke into peals of laughter. Then, Jessica just happened to open up to a page that said, "Love is."  
  
"Do you think she's trying to give you a hint Mr. B?" Jess asked, while the other girls laughed.  
  
"Jess." he said trailing off.  
  
"Mr. B," Jess said.  
  
"What?" he asked.  
  
"Is this where you order your friends from too?" She asked followed by some snickers. He didn't bother to answer because he knew that if he did then the torment would continue. So, he turned the other cheek and walked away. While he walked away he could still hear the taunting laughs of the girls.  
  
It was painful to think of the days when he would have fun teaching the group. So, he packed up his stuff and got into his car. On the solemn drive home he kept thinking about the entire old group. But, as he turned into his driveway he had more things to worry about, like how would the concert turn out.  
  
II. Two Spirits  
  
What am I going to do? He thought. Then, as time passed he decided that he would go to bed because he had to work with the little kids the next day. He climbed into bed and immediately fell asleep. At 12 o'clock he heard his alarm go off and floating over his bed was Jill and Cynthia in white robes.  
  
"What the?" said Mr. B.  
  
"You aren't happy teaching orchestra anymore are you?" asked Cynthia.  
  
"There will be three ghosts coming to see you tonight. One will come at one, one at two, and the last will be at three. They will show you to be happy with your job. But, remember don't piss 'em off, well at least one of them," said Jill.  
  
"I don't understand," said Mr. B.  
  
"It's easy! Three ghosts are coming. Didn't you ever read A Christmas Carol?" said Cynthia.  
  
"Oh," Mr. B half-heartedly said.  
  
Jill's spirit looked at a watch on her arm and said, "Look at the time Cyn; we have to go float around the world for another 5,000 years. Oh, by the way, Mr. B, sleep now, you won't have time later."  
  
"Okay?" He said as he put his head down. Then he thought; am I getting a fever because I'm delirious.  
  
III. The Ghost of Orchestra Past  
  
He drifted off to sleep and then he was awakened by the sound of a country fiddling song. Sure enough, Chris was sitting on his chair fiddling away. Chris was wearing a plaid shirt and a pair of overalls on with a piece of straw hanging out of his mouth. Mr. B sat up and rubbed his eyes to make sure that he wasn't having a nightmare. When the song was over Chris looked up and said, "I thought that would make you arise from your slumber."  
  
"Am I having a cruel nightmare?" asked a very bewildered Mr. B.  
  
"No, it's more of a subconscious dream, if you want to think of it that way," said Chris.  
  
"What do you have to show me?" Mr. B asked impatiently.  
  
"What don't I have to show you? Now, come with me and I shall show you the past days." Then Chris and Mr. B were sitting in a hay wagon riding towards Dag. Then, they were in the auditorium where he saw the old gang. They sounded good and there was the old Mr. B behind the stand. When he was teaching them he looked happy, but now he looked like a 50 year old man at only 38.  
  
Chris then said, "Watch closely and listen."  
  
Mr. B listened and his heart lifted when he heard the bickering between Jess and Chris, it was what made orchestra fun. But, then he remembered the sound of Wendy joining Jess and everyone laughing on behalf of Chris.  
  
Chris's spirit then stated, "Remember those days? When you all had fun and I didn't? I remember them perfectly."  
  
Mr. B then said, "Yea, I remember those days. You have to think they were the least bit funny."  
  
Chris's spirit then retorted, "Only when we were making fun of you."  
  
Then the scene changed. The auditorium was filled with people and the group was on stage. They had just finished and Wendy, Joyce, and Deana, had gotten him a present (while Jess wrote the speech and the card.) You could tell that he was embarrassed because of his recognizable blushing. That was probably one of the best concerts ever.  
  
The last thing Chris's spirit showed Mr. B was an orchestra full of laughter and fun. They had brought in their violins, but there was no playing going on here. It was after their last concert together and they were talking about all of the things that happened in their time together. It was a bittersweet flashback.  
  
Then, they were back in Mr. B's room. Chris then said, "I have to be going now, but don't fret someone else will be here in a few minutes."  
  
IV. The Ghost of Orchestra Present  
  
As Mr. B tried to fall asleep again he heard his alarm. It was 2 o'clock. Standing next to his bed was Wendy in a green robe. She had chalice filled with a type of drink, not wine, but grape juice. She said, "Yo Mr. B, drink some of this, it's good."  
  
"Is it poisoned?" asked Mr. B.  
  
"No, I'm not that mean spirited. C'mon drink this," Wendy persuaded him to drink. He took the cup and drank some. Although bitter, the drink was still good. His spirits lifted as he handed the cup back to Wendy, "Oh, did I mention that the juice was spiked. Oh well," Wendy said.  
  
As Mr. B sat up and put his hand on his forehead he said, "What do you have to show me now?"  
  
"I'm going to show you what it's like for everyone else this Christmas concert," said Wendy, "now take the glass with you, just in case you forget about being happy." Just as she said that they reappeared into a small room. A little Christmas ditty was being played and as the light came Mr. B saw Deana playing. She was practicing "Oh Holy Night," as she starred blankly onto the music a sigh escaped her lips. It was a tough year; the anguish of having no one around was a little too much to bear. As Mr. B looked upon the sad girl Wendy said, "C'mon we have places to go and more people to see."  
  
With that said the scene dramatically changed. All around Mr. B saw bales of hay and people who looked like Hill Billys. Up on the stage was a band and without a doubt Chris was in the middle doing a rendition of "Jingle Bells," with fiddling techniques.  
  
Mr. B looked around with a pale face. Never had he thought that Chris would belittle himself this much. But as soon as he thought it couldn't get any worse he saw himself in the audience! He got on his knees and said, "Please! Take me away from this place! Will this really happen? Take me away!"  
  
"I suppose I can," Wendy said as she swung her robe. The last stop was a little hall filled with about 30 different people. Up on stage was Wendy playing her heart out and as Mr. B heard her he said, "Is that really you?"  
  
"No, but hey I'm a spirit, I can do whatever I want," after she finished that sentence Mr. B found himself in his room again. He went to get a cup of coffee and then he saw a figure shrouded in black in his house.  
  
V. The Ghost of Orchestra Future  
  
"Let me guess, this is Jessica. I can tell," he said.  
  
As the hood flipped over her head she said, "How'd you guess?"  
  
"Something told me," he said.  
  
"Okay, well I have to show you your bleak and scary future that you can change," she said as they appeared in an old auditorium. "This is Dag 30 years from now. Follow me," she said as she pointed her finger towards the green room, "Is the pointed too much?"  
  
"Yea, that's a little too much," he said as he followed her.  
  
The green room was still small and bad. But, there was an old man, and I mean OLD, wearing Mr. B's clothes.  
  
"Oh my God! Is that me?" he said with a sudden horrified look on his face.  
  
"Wait," she said, "it gets worse."  
  
"How can it get wor-"as he said that Miss Bontatibus walked into the room.  
  
"You have to be kidding me. You're just like Wendy, showing me things that will never be," he said as he looked away.  
  
"No, I didn't fake this one," she said.  
  
"You lie," he said, "show me the truth."  
  
"You want the truth? You want the truth? You can't handle the truth!" she said. "I suppose I can show you another option." As she said that the scenery changed to a creepy graveyard.  
  
"Where's mine?" Mr. B said, not surprised at all.  
  
"Over there," Jess said as she nodded her head towards a lone tombstone.  
  
The sign read, "Mr. David Boudreau, teacher 1968-2038. Music begins and ends with silence, especially in Dag Hammarskjold."  
  
"Very funny," he said, "so how can I change this?"  
  
"Didn't you figure that out yourself? I have no idea, I guess you have to deal with it yourself," Jess said with a snicker. "It's time for me to go, see you later." As that was said Mr. B was back in his room and it was morning.  
  
VI. The Ending and Epilogue  
  
Mr. B looked out of the window and saw someone walking below, "What day is it?" He asked.  
  
"The day of the Dag concert," said the person.  
  
"Oh my God!" Mr. B threw on his clothes and rushed to Dag. As you probably figured out the concert went well and all of his old string players came saw the performance.  
  
Also, Mr. B did not end up with Miss Bontatibus and he did not end up dead in 2038. But, he did end using "Fiddles out West" 22 times in a row, a world record.  
  
Jess ended up being a world famous author, Wendy become a radio personnel, Diana became a player at Carnegie Hall, Jill and Cynthia became famous, and lastly Chris did absolutely nothing with his life and died alone. The sixth grader in the beginning gave up the violin and won the Nobel Peace Prize.  
  
This is the end, so go away and if you ever want to read this again you are one crazy mo' fo. 


End file.
